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An American biopharmaceutical company will be contributing to the development of a state-of-the-art global biotechnology center in Hangzhou, China, to promote the production of biosimilar medicines for local use and for export.

Pfizer (New York, NY, USA) announced that it will invest approximately 350 million USD towards the development of the Hangzhou Economic Development Area (HEDA). This facility will be Pfizer’s third biotechnology center globally and the first in Asia.

The Global Biotechnology Center, which is expected to be operational in 2018, will include an advanced KUBio modular manufacturing facility provided by GE Healthcare (Chalfont St. Giles, United Kingdom). KUBio, which creates biomanufacturing capacity by delivering a fully functional, ready-to-run facility in 14-18 months, consists of prefabricated modules equipped with the heating, ventilating, air conditioning (HVAC) system and all the piping necessary to run a biomanufacturing plant. The facility can be equipped with an integrated FlexFactory single-use manufacturing platform, or a hybrid processing platform.

“We believe that the Pfizer Global Biotechnology Center in Hangzhou will help support China’s aim to increase the complexity and value of its manufacturing sector by 2025, and contribute to building a truly innovative and vibrant biopharmaceutical industry,” said John Young, Group President, Pfizer Essential Health. “We are encouraged by a series of important reforms introduced by Chinese government that will further stimulate the industry to meet emerging health challenges, such as the rising incidence of non-communicable diseases and an aging population; as well as attract both domestic and foreign investment in healthcare and R&D.”

“As governments and companies the world over strive to give patients access to a new class of life-changing biological medicines, GE’s KUBio modular factories allow biopharmaceutical companies to get their products to market quickly so they can respond rapidly to local healthcare needs. KUBio’s modular construction and single-use technologies, coupled with GE’s deep expertise in bioprocessing design, enable speed and increased productivity at global GMP standards wherever they are needed,” said Kieran Murphy, CEO of GE Healthcare Life Sciences.